Homes
by CrazyBeaver
Summary: Sometimes we come back to the places we come from to remember the old times. But sometimes our present catches up with us even when we turn to our past.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: So here's another idea I've had for QUITE a while. It's a bit risky so don't kill me for the future twists…_

_I don't own anything…_

**Prologue**

It was quite late into the evening, and the street lights had already replaced the sun. London was still as full of life as ever, although a particular passerby paid no attention to any of the noises around him. He walked along the streets without any evident purpose, buried deep into his thoughts.

The man seemed to be in his mid to late thirties, his blue eyes looking around without focusing on anything in particular, his blond hair catching the beams from every street light he passed.

He didn't know how to feel. He was back here in this city, after years of being so far away from this life. His old life. He wasn't quite sure he felt nostalgic though, as he was happy with the life he had now, with the people he grew attached to and who cared about him, even though sometimes it was really hard for him to live the way he did now.

He stopped near one house and stared at the front door. The windows were dark, as it was now quite late into the night. This house held so many memories. His childhood, those first years in this world. He had lived there up till he went to university, but place had remained to be his idea of "home" for years. He wondered who lived here now. Would this very same house become someone else's _home_? Would someone else come back to it years later, remembering their own childhood? He sighed, smirking a bit to himself. Normally he wasn't so sentimental but today seemed like a special day for some reason.

He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that didn't notice someone approaching him from behind. There suddenly was a sensation of something poking into his back. Something that felt suspiciously like a barrel of a gun.

"Good evening, agent Dunn," a quiet but menacing voice hissed into his ear.

He took a deep breath, trying to get his worry under control. There were two ways he could go: trying to get away or face whatever it was. Before that, however, he needed to find out something…

"How do you know my name?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

"From now on it's not you who will be asking questions," was the reply.

He took another deep breath. This time he was steadying himself for an attack. Without wasting a second, he turned around so sharply that the attacker didn't have the opportunity to pull the trigger, grabbing the man's wrists and twisting them, making the gun fall down onto the asphalt, and threw the attacker to join it. He leaned down to pick up the gun but right at that moment another shape appeared in his peripheral view. He turned to face the new threat but didn't have the time to react to a sudden noise from behind as a heavy blow was delivered to the back of his head and he knew no more, darkness swallowing him before he even hit the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: So here's the second chapter! Hope you guys enjoy it…_

_I don't own anything._

**Chapter 1**

Vision was coming back to him without any rush. His head was pounding and there still was ringing in his ears. He hated this feeling. He also hated the fact that he was familiar with this feeling just enough to have grown to hate it on a regular basis. His job sure had its down points. His eyes still rolling in their sockets, unable to focus, he began to blink furiously, trying to get his consciousness back as fast as possible. That was helped by what felt like a bucket of icy water pouring over him.

"Welcome back to reality, agent Dunn," the voice from earlier spoke again, as the captive coughed and shook his head.

He raised his head up, calculating his chances. His wrists were tied to a pole behind his head, his ankles also bound together. The place seemed to be abandoned and distant from people. The chances didn't seem to be very high.

"You're not very talkative, are you?" the voice asked mockingly.

"Well, I asked you a question and you didn't reply," he tried to keep his uncertainty under control.

"Playing dumb, are we?" the captor smirked, seemingly somewhat amused by the whole situation. "Anyway, that's not the point here. The point is that you know something we want to know. You and your friends put some of _our_ friends away from us. And we miss them a bit, you know. And you will help us get to them, won't you?"

"Why would I do that?" _that's right, play it cool while being tied up like this. There's no way they will let you walk away alive regardless of what you do_.

"Well, you have two options," the goon shrugged nonchalantly. "Either you help us and die quickly and as painlessly as possible, _or_ you refuse to help us… and we will do everything possible to convince you. And believe me, we have some very… strong… arguments".

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

It was about 5 o'clock in the morning when Ethan's phone rang. Not that he was ever fast asleep while on a mission, which was now, but being woken up so roughly was never good. Besides, it usually didn't promise any good, either.

"Hello?" his voice was still groggy and hoarse as he blinked, trying to clear his mind.

"Ethan, what the hell is going on out there?" Luther sounded both worried and pissed off. A bit like a father would sound like if his kid had been out playing under a heavy rain.

"What do you mean?" Ethan's heartbeat peaked, as the remains of sleep were finally leaving him.

"You don't _know_?!" Luther practically yelled out. "One of the members of your team has been captured. Even worse – he has been seen and recorded on a security camera, and you don't know about it!"

Ethan suddenly felt very ill. And not understanding what was going on didn't help matters, either.

"What? Who?" his throat felt dry, making it hard to speak.

"Benji!" Luther growled, exasperated. "I'll email you the pictures".

Ethan shut his eyes tightly. Benji had felt reluctant about going on this mission from the very start. Of course, here in London there was a possibility for him to bump into someone he knew from his previous, pre-IMF life. That's why, while Ethan, Jane and Brandt had settled in a hotel, Benji had insisted on staying in some apartment in some faraway area of the city. None of his teammates objected to that, as it was a perfectly reasonable idea.

"Who was it? Do we know where they took him?" Ethan felt ashamed of asking those questions but he had to.

"It looked like some of our old friends. You went on this mission to get them, and look, they got one of you. And you know the rules, Ethan. Benji's been caught. They are most likely going to disavow him now".

Luther didn't waste any time on saying goodbye before disconnecting.

Ethan sighed. He had no time to waste, either. First thing they had to do was to check Benji's apartment to see whether anything had been taken from it. And then… They had to proceed with the mission. Hopefully they would find Benji in the process. Hopefully alive and well. He knew the last part was too much of a wishful thinking. Cursing under his breath, he sprang to his feet, getting dressed in a hurry and hearing the sound of an email message.

It took him five minutes to wake up Jane and Brandt. It took them five more minutes to gather in Jane's room and look at the camera recording Luther had sent.

"What was he doing there?" Brandt asked, looking at the image of his teammate on the screen. "Wasn't he supposed to be getting some sleep?"

"I think that's what he had been worried about," Ethan sighed, running a hand through his hair. "He must have gotten sentimental. Went to visit some places he had fond memories of…"

Jane shook her head. As understandable as it was, the agents still couldn't help but admit that it was also quite unprofessional of Benji. They had to be prepared to work anywhere. They had to know how to push feelings to the side. And Benji seemed to be quite good at this, too.

"We must go check on his apartment," Brandt uttered hurriedly. Ethan nodded. Benji had screwed up by getting caught like that, but if they had been in his hideout, the team was even more screwed. They needed to know how bad the situation was.

The way to Benji's place was quiet. None of the agents spoke, feeling that saying anything might just annoy everyone else, sensing how the tension in the car was beyond palpable.

The door lock didn't seem to be that complicated to break, and yet it was taking longer than the three agents wanted. Annoyed, Brandt kept fumbling with the device he knew Benji was better with, and when he felt the lock was weakened enough, he delivered a mighty kick on the door, bursting it wide open, as it nearly fell off its hinges.

Brandt dashed inside on his top speed, followed by Jane and Ethan, but stopped a few steps in… to see a gun pointed right at his face.


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: So here's another chapter! I'm quite worried about it… And sorry it's so short! hope it's good enough though…_

_I don't own anything._

**Chapter 2**

_Okay, calm down. Calm down and think. You won't be able to think soon by the looks of it. So use the time you have left to do so. The huge guy standing with a gun by the door is Bill Riley, known in certain circles for organising and taking part in armed robberies which often ended with several dead bodies. The three others are his band mates. You know them all, be calm. But who is their spokesman? The one who is glaring at you like at a dead animal before skinning it. And you are supposed to know who he is, that's the worst thing about it. And you don't. And if they find out you haven't recognised him, then…_

A sharp blow to the jaw broke him out of his thoughts. An entire series of heavy hits landed on his torso, his ribs protesting painfully. He knew it wouldn't be long before they gave up…

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Brandt was now cursing the very moment he had accepted this mission. It had seemed easy, just cutting some loose ends after a big op. The remains of the band they had defeated had fled to Britain, so Team Hunt had to follow suit, Benji complaining and protesting all the time. But a job is a job, and it has to be finished.

And now everything had gone to shit. And he couldn't even begin to comprehend what was going on. All he wanted to do at this point was to say "that's it, guys, I'm done" and go away. But he couldn't do that because there was a gun pointed at him.

Too exasperated to speak, he turned his gaze to his teammates whose expressions were almost comically blank, as they just stared wide-eyed. He reckoned he probably had the same expression right now. Simply because he had no idea how to feel in this situation. He turned to look straight ahead of him again, noticing that the gun was now lowered a bit. To be completely honest, the gun itself wasn't Brandt's biggest problem at the moment, it was the gunman.

"Are you out of your minds?!" the voice was so loud it made the three agents jump. It was also very angry.

"B-B-Benji?" Brandt finally found his voice, despite speaking was still a bit tricky of a task.

"That's a brilliant deduction, detective Brandt," the technician put the gun down and walked up to the analyst. For some reason the lack of the gun didn't make him look any less threatening. "I really wonder why you didn't deduce how to use a door a few seconds ago".

"Benji," Brandt repeated again. "I don't understand…"

"Who the hell did you expect to see when you broke into my flat?!"

"Anyone but you actually…" Ethan finally spoke, sounding just as confused as Brandt. Benji turned an almost pleading gaze to Jane.

"Jane, please tell me at least you can explain something," the Englishman asked and noticed that she was now walking up to him. "What is going o…" he wasn't given the chance to finish as the DNA tester was forced into his mouth.

There were a few seconds of silence as the former technician had given up on asking questions.

"It's him," Jane finally proclaimed, causing a sigh of slight relief from Ethan and Brandt.

"Seriously guys," Benji was trying to stay as calm as he could, given the circumstances. "What's going on?"

"Benji," Ethan's authoritative tone was back at last, and it was strangely comforting. "Have you left this place in the past few hours?"

"What? No," Benji felt quite agitated now. "Why? What happened?"

Without saying anything, Ethan took out his phone, pressed a few buttons and handed it to Benji.

"This video was sent to me by Luther less than an hour ago," he said, watching the younger agent take the device. He noticed him frown as the recording started. As it went on, Benji's eyes kept growing wider, his face expressing some unidentifiable emotion and turning paler in shade. As soon as it was over, the Brit swallowed and took a deep breath.

"Well, I can see why you broke in like that now," his voice was low, as if it was hard for him to speak.

"Do you think it was someone wearing a mask?" Jane suggested timidly.

"Seems like it," Ethan replied thoughtfully. "I lip-read some of what they said. The attacker, who looks like our good old friend Phillip Black, said something that looked like your name, Benji. And this guy… whoever he is… asked him how he knew his name".

"What if we check some police reports?" Brandt suggested. "A man gets grabbed in the middle of the street, there is a CCTV record… I mean, what if someone has been pretending to be Benji for a while? To set him up for something or…"

Benji rubbed his face with his hand.

"I know who it is," his teammates could barely hear him, so quiet his voice was.

"What?" three heads were simultaneously turned in his direction. He sighed, looking at the floor, trying to keep himself under control.

"I need to check something first," the Brit was close to whispering now.

He walked up to the computer and a few seconds later was typing furiously. It didn't take long before he stopped and breathed out "Damn it".

"Mind letting us in?" Jane was beginning to feel impatient, and she wasn't very good at hiding it.

"It's not someone wearing a mask," Benji looked up at the ceiling, as if trying to prevent his emotions from running wild. "It's my brother".


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: Okay, so now that one of the twists had been revealed, I can say what I had intended to say from the very beginning. This story is dedicated to my mind twin. I know she is reading this and I just wanted to point out how amazing she is. Thank you for everything._

_Anyways, I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you…_

_I still don't own them._

**Chapter 3**

The words caused the effect of an explosion. There was a complete silence as Ethan, Brandt and Jane stared at their teammate, trying to comprehend what they had just heard.

"You've got a brother?" Brandt was the first one to speak. The fact that Benji had a twin brother wasn't that shocking by itself, but the fact that he had managed to keep it secret for so long was. The team had grown very close over the time that had passed since their Ghost Protocol mission, and they seemed to have learned everything about each other. And now it turned out it wasn't true at all.

"Why have you never told us?" Jane's voice was quiet and timid because of the astonishment. Benji just shrugged and shook his head.

"I don't understand," Ethan intervened, peaking at the screen from behind the Brit's shoulder and noticing that the opened page was just a search among the current news tagged 'kidnapping'. "He got grabbed right in front of a CCTV camera. It should have made news. But I can't see anything about it. Do the police know about it? Or are they hiding it?"

Benji nodded.

"That's what weirded me out at first," he admitted, his stare still blank and unfocused. "But then… you see, my brother is a police officer. A very good one, probably the best".

"So their best man gets captured and they do nothing about it?" Brandt asked, ridiculed. Benji shrugged.

"Maybe they don't know what to do and are trying to buy some time…" he suggested thoughtfully. "Maybe the police were also somehow after these guys. That might be why he was in London to begin with. I wonder why he agreed," the technician swallowed. "I thought he didn't want to ever come back".

He fell silent, and for a while nobody spoke, as no-one had any idea where to even start. It felt like that comment had an entire story behind it but nobody was eager to ask.

"So what are we going to do?" Jane inquired at last.

"We look for our targets," Ethan's tone was firm as he tried to make his teammates feel more confident. "Proceed with our mission".

"And Benji should lay low," Brandt continued. "We don't want any more confusion".

"But we have no idea where they are," Benji argued. "I agree that I can't be seen by anyone now but we need somewhere to start from".

Ethan closed his eyes with concentration. After hearing the news about Benji's apparent kidnapping they had had to cut off some connections and now they had lost their lead to the target. Now he could see Benji's point but felt a bit lost.

"Are you suggesting we try and get this information from the police?" he asked, his voice lacking any enthusiasm whatsoever.

"They might have more evidence," Benji got that defensive look he always had when his ideas were being doubted. "All we have is one short video which doesn't lead us anywhere. It's obviously just a small part of what they have access to".

"But look at this secrecy, Benji," Brandt argued softly. "We have no idea what policemen to talk to or where to go even if we do manage to infiltrate their forces".

Benji rubbed his face.

"You are not going to impersonate him, are you?" Jane asked incredulously, her attentive gaze never leaving the blond man's features.

"No," Benji replied, obviously having had the idea in his mind. "It might only raise a lot of unnecessary questions and suspicions. We need to find another way. That would be our last resort…"

"Jesus, you are actually considering this!" Brandt exclaimed. "That's ridiculous! We don't even know what his role in this was! And whether he had a role in this story at all!"

"Which is why I said we need to find another way," Benji also raised his voice before falling silent as he remembered that the front door was missing and the conversation could be heard by anyone.

"Okay," Ethan broke in, hoping to turn the tension down. "Benji, did anyone in the IMF know about your brother?"

"Of course," Benji would have rolled his eyes but he tried to keep his nerves under control so much that his voice was almost completely emotionless. "It wasn't like he was hiding in a cave all this time. He made headlines a few times actually. Our agents in Britain knew about him very well".

Ethan nodded. Somewhere deep down inside he felt a bit offended by the fact that absolutely random people knew more about Benji's family than his closest friends did. But now was not the time to think about that.

"We're gonna contact those agents and see what they know," the team leader continued. "Maybe they know what your brother has been up to. What's his name, by the way?"

"Nick," Benji let his chin rest on his hands as he put his elbows on the table, staring in front of him melancholically. "I mean, Nicholas. Nicholas Angel".


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: Thanks for still sticking with this story! Hope this chapter is good enough for you…_

_I don't own anything._

**Chapter 4**

Nicholas was left alone for the first time in a long while. Everything hurt but his head was clear, as his captors avoided hitting it. They obviously needed something he knew. Or, to be exact, something _Benji_ knew. And he didn't even know all of them… Nicholas' thoughts moved back a bit. Why were they specifically looking for Benji? _How is he involved with all this? These people must be a really serious threat then. Not only is a secret agency after them, but they seem to be after its agents…_

Nicholas swallowed. Sometimes he really wished he didn't know what his brother's job was. He appreciated the fact that Benji trusted him enough to have told him about it but this knowledge was every bit of the opposite of comforting.

_Soon they will find out I'm not him… Will they even believe it though?_ Nicholas laughed silently despite the situation. It was just too ridiculous. He also knew that they hadn't really started with him yet. They were probably talking about their strategy now.

_Why the hell did I agree to take part in this operation? I could have refused like I had done before and stayed in Sandford, away from this madness…_ Another snort. _Yeah, Nicholas, Sandford is so much saner than London, sure. It's the maddest madhouse on the planet and you know it. Besides…_ his heartbeat peaked… _it could be Benji in your place here now._ Or maybe not. Benji, seemingly knowing more about this deal, probably wouldn't have gotten caught to begin with.

Which brought Nicholas back to the thought that had been hiding in the depths of his mind all this time. _Benji is near. He is somewhere here, in London. And whatever he is doing here has something to do with these people. And these people know who he is, which is not very good. And…_

The door opened again, cutting off his thoughts.

"So, Mr Dunn, for the last time I'm asking nicely. Where did you take our friends?"

Nicholas shrugged. From the objective point of view, he was the perfect person to be captured by them because he didn't know anything and couldn't reveal any important information even if he wanted to. From his own point of view, however, it wasn't that brilliant. But at least he could win some time for Benji to do whatever he was supposed to…

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Benji was biting on his fingernail, feverishly pressing some keys on his laptop. Ethan was in the next room talking to Luther on the phone.

"So…" Jane broke the silence at last as curiosity got the better of her. Despite her voice was quiet, it made Benji jump. "You have a cop brother?"

Seeing how the former technician just nodded, she tried to push a bit further, trying to take his mind off the current situation.

"What is he like? I mean, not in appearance but… Is he a lot like you?"

Benji cracked a ghost of a smile.

"I'd say he is very much not like me. He's more like…" he paused for a second, thinking, "… more like Ethan".

Brandt and Jane's eyes widened. It was hard to imagine Benji's Dunn's twin brother resembling Ethan Hunt even a slightest bit.

The Englishman typed again, and soon there was something that looked like a newspaper article on the screen. Jane and Brandt felt very weird looking at the picture attached to it, as the face looked just like Benji's, and yet the expression made it seem entirely different. The headline said "Hero Cop Saves Family".

"He was the best police officer here in London," Benji managed a smile. "And then they reassigned him… I don't really know why, he tried to explain it to me last time we talked but it seemed like some rubbish".

"So you keep in touch?" Jane asked, even more startled than before.

"Yeah…" Benji sighed. "Not that much but we do," he paused. "So they made him move to some village in the middle of nowhere and…"

He turned back to the screen and typed something else into the search bar.

'_Community That Kills: A Series of Horrific Murders Uncovered in the West Country_'

Beneath this headline there were photos of some place in the typical English countryside. There were also pictures of some people in police uniforms.

"It was Nick who cracked this case. Dozens of murders masked as accidents. They tried to kill him, too. But he did it. He fought them off. I don't know how much of what I heard to believe, cause I've read that he rode into the village on a white horse and started a big fight but I just don't think it's true…"

Benji sighed again.

"He got shot and beaten but he didn't stop. And won. This was what inspired me to move to the field work," _that and the time I helped Ethan find Julia, actually._ But Benji knew he couldn't talk about that. The next breath he drew was a shaky one. "Nick has always been a hero to me. Ever since we were little, when other boys would bully me for always having my nose in a book, and he would stand for me. He sometimes pretended to be me in fights. Once he got beaten up quite badly by some older boys".

He got quiet for a few more seconds, recalling what he had felt that day. The guilt and anger he had felt….

"When we grew up, we went our separate ways, attended different universities. I didn't want him to get into any more trouble because of me. Look where it brought us now".

The last sentence was a whisper, as the agent couldn't keep his voice even any more. He dropped his head onto his folded arms, feeling something he knew was his friends' hands on his back.

"We'll find him, Benji," Jane tried her best reassuring tone.

"Yeah, it's gonna be fine," Brandt added.

Footsteps broke the awkward silence that had fallen. The three agents looked up to see Ethan standing in the door frame with his phone in his hand.

"Please tell me we have a plan," Brandt asked exasperatedly.


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: I am SO sorry for the long silence! I hope this chapter is good enough for you amazing people…_

_I still don't own them though._

**Chapter 5**

Nicholas needed a plan. It was clear that as long as they thought he was Benji, they needed him alive. But it would only help to win some time. He needed to break out. He had to escape while he was still in shape for that.

"So," a chirpy voice from the door made him look up, as his heartbeat peaked. "Agent Dunn. _Benjamin_, if you will," the use of the name made Nicholas swallow. He'd be absolutely happy without knowing what his brother had gotten himself into this time. But now he was in this himself. He wondered if Benji even knew about this at all. And then his mind travelled to the place he now called home. Sandford, his police station, his friends. Danny. Danny Butterman, who always made complicated things look simple. Who was so far from all this spy madness that he seemed to live in an entirely different universe from where Nicholas was now. He might never see him again… As well as his brother. And all the others. He gritted his teeth. No way he would let it happen.

"So, are you still not being collaborative?"

Nicholas looked around him feverishly, a crazy idea crossing his mind. You'd think that after riding into a town full of armed serial murderers on a white horse and proceeding to fight them all you wouldn't be able to call _any_ idea crazy but sometimes life just proves us wrong about everything. Now he needed to wrap it up realistically…

"So what are you offering if I agree to help you?" he asked timidly.

"Depends on how much you help us…" the man smirked. "You can make sure that your death will be quick and painless… Or we could form a more… long-term partnership… and you can stay with us, be one of us… It's really your choice to make".

Nicholas sighed deeply.

"I don't want to die," he muttered just loudly enough to be heard. Well, that at least was not a lie.

"I understand that sentiment, Benj," the man patted Nicholas' shoulder, making the police officer cringe. "However, just as a sign of your… eagerness, you need to help us here…"

Nicholas swallowed, trying to be as convincing as possible.

"Can't really help you with these on," he shook his arms a bit, showing that his wrists were still cuffed to a pole behind his head.

The man smirked.

"Sorry," he said with a bit too much friendliness in his tone for it to be genuine. "I can't just let you go, can I?"

He reached towards the pole and Nicholas heard something behind his head click. He felt that he now could lower his arms, but the handcuffs were still on his wrists. It was a part of the pole that had opened. His legs were soon released, too, enabling him to stand normally.

"And now if you will follow me…" the man smiled with an obviously fake smile and turned his back to his captive for a split second, which was more than enough for him to react. In a heartbeat there was a chain of the handcuffs digging into the captor's skin on his neck.

Nicholas knew this was probably his only chance. He knew where to push to block the oxygen. His biggest concern was the possible noise the man could make. And, he felt deep down inside, the possible death he could be causing with his actions.

Once he was sure his captor was unconscious, the inspector lowered him to the floor silently, checking for a pulse as he did so and nodding to himself when he felt it. Much to his disappointment, he noted that the man didn't have a gun. Cursing under his breath, he ran to the door and stealthily slipped through it.

He had to freeze as he saw Bill Riley, a mobster he knew, walking towards him. Hiding behind the door and letting him walk by, Nicholas made his move once Riley stopped to peer inside the room the captive had been previously kept in. The inspector hoped that a hard hit in the back of the head would knock his opponent out, but the handcuffs made it harder to deliver a good strike, and it backfired, as the man turned around and yelled out before another punch from Nicholas finally sent him falling to the floor.

Knowing that his chances were dropping lower, Nicholas turned around to try and make a run for it, but was met with the sight of two more mobsters and was barely fast enough to avoid two simultaneous hits. He wasn't willing to give up, preparing himself for a fight, but suddenly there was a loud bang, and he felt fiery pain in his thigh. Unable to stand on his legs anymore, he fell down, letting out a cry of agony. Being stabbed seemed to be losing its status of the single most painful experience of his life…

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Please tell me we have a plan," Brandt was looking at Ethan as if it was his last hope in life. The team leader merely shook his head.

"They were good at keeping everything secret this time," he sighed. "Our agents suggested we could find some leads to the policemen we need by contacting the ones who worked with Benji's brother".

"You mean…" the technician looked like he had trouble processing that information, "… you mean we're going to go to Sandford?"

"I'm afraid yes".


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: I am so sorry for the delay! I've been terribly busy at work lately, so sorry for the long wait! And thank you for staying with me!_

_Still don't own them…_

**Chapter 6**

"Ethan, are you sure about this?" Brandt asked, as Jane and Benji froze up at hearing the leader's plan. "Getting more people involved in this… more policemen, actually… Do they even know about you, Benji?"

The technician shook his head.

"They don't, as far as I know. We agreed that Nick wouldn't tell anyone about me. And for the people who knew us before I moved to America, we made up a story that I'd died in a car crash".

There was a short silence, as it finally dawned on everyone how many liaisons had to be cut off in order for Benji to start his new life in America. But still…

"Of course, we could have gone without doing it, and I could have just moved," Benji added, seeing some confusion in his friends' faces. "But then we'd need to come up with excuses for me never showing up when he got promoted or did something especially exceptional or… or got wounded," Benji swallowed, "for never being there when he needed me".

He sighed and shook his head. Nick certainly needed him _now_, but yet again, he was the reason his brother had gotten in trouble to begin with…

"I think Benji should stay here," Jane spoke up after another awkward silence.

Ethan took a few seconds before nodding. Of course, they could let him wear a mask but it was still too risky. Besides, it was unlikely that they would stay in Sandford for long. They just needed information to proceed with their search. It couldn't be far from London anyway. The team leader looked at the Englishman, expecting him to speak his mind, but got nothing, as Benji remained silent, staring in front of him absentmindedly.

"Jane has a point," Ethan had to admit. Benji just shrugged, still in silence. "You should stay here and see if you can get any information from the cops' computers…"

Benji nodded, still wordless. Sensing his teammates' concern, he looked up.

"Yeah," he finally said, a faint smile growing on his lips, "I think I should also fix that door, shouldn't I?"

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Do you think he's gonna be fine?" Brandt asked Ethan, throwing a worried glance at the building they had just left their friend in.

"He will be as soon as we find his brother," the team leader replied without slowing down his pace.

"And what if we don't?" Jane asked quietly but steadily. "In the time that had passed anything could have happened. We can be too late".

Ethan stopped and took a deep breath, turning to his teammates.

"We will do it," he stated and, without adding a single word, continued his walk.

The way to Sandford took quite a few hours, which were mostly spent in rather heavy silence, as all the agents could think about was how to make it there faster.

Sandford was very not like the places the agents were mostly used to. It felt like everything here was cartoonishly, fairy-tale-ishly calm and peaceful. It was hard to believe that something like what Benji had read in that article could have possibly happened here.

It was also hard to believe that someone like Benji's brother could be happily settled here. Unless he was really tired of being a big city cop… The three Americans felt like they stood out in this place, that everyone here knew each other, and were now throwing curious glances at them. Another unusual and unwelcome feeling for the agents who were used to being stealthy and passing unnoticed everywhere. Now was not the case for that.

Finding the police station was fairly easy, as it was a relatively new building, albeit quite a small one. Working out a plan was even easier, as they didn't need to get too complicated now.

Inside it was weirdly quiet for a police station. They saw a curly haired policeman sitting at the reception desk and reading a book, seemingly without noticing the newcomers.

"Excuse me," Brandt called out impatiently, causing a somewhat annoyed look from the policeman who obviously didn't like being distracted from his book.

"We're from the FBI," Ethan spoke up without waiting for the policeman to say anything, deciding to be blunt from the very start. They didn't have any time to waste. The three of them took out their badges almost simultaneously. This gesture seemed to have some sort of effect on the curly haired man, as he was now looking at them expectantly, however, without rewarding them with any sort of a verbal response.

"We're looking for Nicholas Angel," Ethan went on, looking at the man intently.

"He's not in," the policeman finally proved that he wasn't actually mute, although there was still no emotion on his face.

"Where is he then?" Jane demanded, trying to stay calm, although the man was really getting on her nerves.

"I don't know," the policeman shrugged. "Nobody tells me nothin'".

Brandt had to physically grab Jane's wrist as he noticed she was about to punch the desk (he hoped it was the desk she was going to punch) in frustration, but then he heard the policeman speak up again.

"Oi! Danny!" he called out to another policeman, who was just passing by. It was a rather large man, however, not very tall. He approached, eyeing the agents up with visible curiosity.

"There's some people here from the FBI," the curly officer spoke again, and the newly arrived cop's eyes lit up instantly. Ethan noted that the way they sparkled with excitement reminded him of Benji's enthusiasm in the Kremlin and suppressed a smile. "They're lookin' for Inspector Angel".

Danny's big brown eyes showed a shadow of confusion and his face got ever so slightly more serious.

"Sergeant Butterman," he introduced himself, trying to look more official and serious. After exchanging brief glances, the agents introduced themselves with their real names, hoping no-one would bother to check them.

After rather hesitantly leading the three guests into an empty room, he finally turned his face to them, his eyes still full of confusion, the established official tone causing him some evident uneasiness.

"So…" he started, looking from one of them to another, "what do you need Inspector Angel for?"


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: Thank you to everyone who is still following this story, I really hope it hasn't disappointed you so far and that this chapter will be good enough for you…_

_I don't own either of the movies used here._

**Chapter 7**

Danny felt increasingly uncomfortable as he expected the guests to give him a reply. The FBI… the real FBI agents! It sounded amazing, but then again, what would they want with Nicholas? Unless it was somehow connected to the case Nicholas had gone to London for… but then they would've just gone to the London police, wouldn't they? This was too complicated and was beginning to give Danny a headache.

"I'm afraid that is classified," Jane replied, and Brandt could have sworn he saw Ethan frown for a second but it was gone before he could make sure about it.

The Sergeant's frown, however, was more obvious.

"I can't tell you where he is," he said quietly. "That is… that is classified, too".

"Sergeant," Ethan spoke up after a sigh. "I'm afraid I'll have to tell you the truth then. Did you know that your inspector had a brother?" he could see his teammates' alarmed glances being shot at him but ignored them.

Danny's eyes widened and he took a few seconds to process that sentence.

"Nicholas doesn't have a brother," he replied weakly. These people must have made a mistake… His eyebrow then creased as his mind suddenly came up with a memory from one night at the pub. After a few pints Danny had said something about wanting to be more like Nicholas and that he still sometimes felt like he wasn't a very good police officer, to which the inspector muttered "You sound just like Benjamin sometimes"…

Danny swallowed. His brain had pushed that memory away, probably because of the drinks, or maybe because of the way Nicholas had gone stiff right after that and asked him to never bring that up again.

"His brother died," Danny added, nodding to himself and looking up at the agents. "He got hit by a car many years ago".

Ethan took a breath. He knew he was walking a risky path right now, but when wasn't he? He felt bad for uncovering Benji's secret but he reckoned the techie wouldn't object if this helped to find and save his brother.

"That's not true," the oldest agent shook his head. "His twin brother Benjamin is alive. He was taken under the witness protection programme shortly after graduating university. We have been keeping him under watch for all these years. He lives in America and works in IT".

Danny felt completely lost. Was this true? If so, did Nicholas know that his brother – his _twin_ brother – was alive? But what if it was a lie? And why would they need Nicholas anyway? He hated these situations. They would usually make him panic. Sometimes he could come up with a solution Nicholas would call genius. He was still proud of himself for doing his knife-and-ketchup trick that had saved Nicholas' life a few years before. But now he had nothing. He needed someone to help him make sense out of all this, but there was no such person around. Should he believe these people? But they were only making his confusion grow.

"What do you want?" he repeated the question again, still not demonstrating any desire to follow their lead.

"Inspector Angel's brother is in danger," Brandt took over, sensing some level of relief at the way Ethan had handled the explanation of Benji being alive.

"Why can't you protect him then?" Danny would sound sceptical if he wasn't so puzzled. "You said you had been doing this for years now".

"The thing is that we think that Angel can be in danger, too," Jane replied, watching the police officer's features intently. Her words had an immediate effect on him. His eyes widened and his breathing got faster.

"Why do you think so?" he asked, his voice going considerably higher.

"We just can't find him, that's all," Jane said as soothingly as she could. "We thought that maybe you could help us…"

Danny didn't know how to respond. Last time he had called Nicholas on his mobile phone, he had gotten no answer, but the inspector had warned him about it. As far as he knew, he had been given some job in London. Secret job. He wasn't sure he could believe these people and wasn't sure he could tell anyone anything about that case, no matter how little he actually knew about it. Suddenly he had an idea. He could try and check on Nicholas by calling up one of the Sergeants from the Met. But if Nicholas really was in danger while on his operation, it was unlikely that Danny would be told anything. _If_ he was in danger.

"Look," Ethan decided to take a risk and act on instinct. "We know he is on a mission, but he might not know what he's dealing with. We have a reason to think that the people he is after are connected to the criminals who tried to kill his brother all those years ago".

Danny shifted in his chair uncomfortably. He needed some proof that they were not lying. On the other hand, he could just give them the phone number of that Sergeant in London Nicholas had told him about. There was one more thing though…

"There's a police officer in London who can know something… I can give you the number," he said timidly. "And… can I go with you please?" he saw as the guests stared at him in bewilderment and already knew the answer. They weren't going to let him join them, it was obvious. "It's just… Nicholas is like a brother to me. I want to help".

"You've already helped," Jane gave him one of her softest smiles. "We'll take care of things, don't worry. But now it would be best if you stayed here".

Danny sighed. _It's not over_, he thought as he watched the visitors walk minutes later, after saying goodbye. _I have to do something_…


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: I am so, so sorry it took me ages to update! There were a lot of reasons for that but you probably don't care about them so… anyway. I hope you are still with me…_

_And yes, the sergeant described here was meant to be the unnamed Martin Freeman character in Hot Fuzz…_

_I still don't own anything._

**Chapter 8**

"So what do we do now?" Brandt asked as the three Americans walked out of the police station. "We can't just call up that guy and ask him where the cop who's supposed to be on a secret mission is, can we?"

"No, we can't," Ethan agreed with a sigh. "But I think I know what we can do".

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Are you sure about this?" Jane whispered as she, Ethan and Brandt walked down a crowded London street.

"When were we sure about anything?" Brandt commented humourlessly, causing the team leader to roll his eyes.

The plan seemed too simple, too straightforward. Maybe that was the reason it was going to work though?...

The office door opened quite soon. Just as they had expected, the receptionist had let them go right through as soon as they had pulled the needed cards. They were sure the officer Sergeant Butterman had told them about would at least be curious about the fact that they knew who Nicholas Angel was.

They did feel a bit nervous about walking around this many policemen but they had no other way. And what they were going to do next was even riskier. But that was the thing about these mad ideas. Once you get into it, there is no way out. You can only go ahead with it with as much confidence as you can muster. Ethan was secretly happy Benji wasn't with them at the moment. Not that he didn't trust him, God knows he trusted him with his life, but this amount of pressure would probably be too much for the technician.

"So, gentlemen… lady," the officer was only a sergeant in rank and yet had quite a level of smugness about him. It was clear he worked really close to the bosses and was quite happy with his position. The fact that he was aware about the secret operations with stakes this high also spoke volumes. He motioned for his visitors to sit down. "I've been told you are from the FBI and came this far for a visit… What did you want to talk about?"

"Sergeant," Ethan began, and Brandt and Jane felt grateful about it. "We know you are after Bill Riley and his gang," he raised his arms when he saw the officer was about to speak up and went on, "and we know that you were going to send one of your best people after them".

The sergeant's features changed, and he glared at the three Americans in shock.

"Whoever told you that…" he mumbled, "I don't…"

"We know you can't talk about it," Brandt took over, "so just listen and then you can make your decision. We've been following Riley for a while, and he's not the biggest wolf in the pack. Do you know anything about Phillip Black?"

The sergeant shook his head in silence, too shocked to say anything.

"Just as we thought," Brandt nodded. He noticed a glare from Ethan and got the impression he was getting too theatrical.

"If you haven't started your operation yet, then you need to make a few changes," Ethan said, looking directly at the policeman. "You have no idea what you are up against. He was involved with dealers supplying weapons to terrorist. We have already dealt with some of his friends but he managed to get out".

"I'm afraid it's impossible," the sergeant replied hesitantly.

"You mean you have already started your operation?" Brandt knew he was being theatrical, but he felt like this was the right thing at the moment.

"I can say no more," the sergeant became rigid.

"We understand," Jane spoke up after sitting in silence during the entire conversation. "But maybe we can combine our forces? Maybe we can help?"

"I…" the officer clearly knew he really shouldn't be talking to these people. But the truth was, he was worried. They had lost Nicholas after he had been grabbed in the middle of a street, and that moment by itself looked suspicious. They couldn't near his exact whereabouts or directly attack the place, as they still didn't know how many people were working for the gang from the outside. The American visitors seemed like they knew something but he couldn't just ask for their help. He wasn't authorised to make such decisions. He sighed.

"Can I… contact you… later?" he asked, uncertainty audible in his voice.

"Sure," Ethan nodded with a small smile as Brandt handed the officer a paper with a phone number written on it. "But please don't take too long. Not only the life of your colleague, but the success of the entire operation depends on it".

The sergeant nodded, clenching his jaws together.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Did you do it?' Ethan asked Jane as they walked out of the building and smiled when he received a nod.

"Brandt was just… attention grabbing enough," she replied, returning the team leader's smile. She was glad that she managed to plant a bug during the conversation. Now all they could do was hope that the sergeant would call somebody, or just try to change something about the operation. And then Benji would trace the signal. They had not a single doubt he would try his hardest to do that.

"Sorry, and what are _you_ doing here?" Brandt's voice brought her from her trance. She blinked, startled, and saw a familiar face of the man she had met only the other day. In front of the, with some weirdly misplaced stern determination on his face, was police sergeant Daniel Butterman.


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: I am so, so, SO sorry for being so late! I was really busy and then had a writer's block… Please forgive me! And thank you to everyone for the patience!_

_I don't own either of the movies._

**Chapter 9**

"So you're FBI agents," Danny couldn't hide his excitement even under such grave circumstances. Jane and Brandt exchanged slightly annoyed glances. They had no idea why Ethan had decided to take him with them. They were almost sure that Ethan didn't know that, either. It felt like everything they ever did just got more and more complicated as it progressed.

"And you protect people who are…" Danny took a pause before saying the important word, "… assets?"

"Yes," Ethan replied shortly with an inward sigh.

"And Nicholas' brother is one of your assets?" Danny asked after a pause as he contemplated asking about whether or not they had ever done all those awesome things FBI agents were supposed to do and pointing out that even he had done some of those. He was trying his hardest not to actually think about Nicholas, as the worry was making him feel slightly dizzy. The people who had him seemed dangerous. The FBI had to protect his brother from them, of course they were dangerous. But they hadn't killed Nicholas at once, so they needed him alive. You don't have to be a detective to understand that.

"Yes, he is," Brandt decided to try and step in. "He had to come here in business so we had to follow him to make sure he's safe".

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

One thing Nicholas could tell for sure was that around him there was complete darkness. His leg was going sore, giving him some hope that it would stop hurting soon. He felt slightly lightheaded, as the amounts of blood coming from the wound were quite impressive. He also noticed that someone must have put a bandage on his leg. Clearly they didn't want him to bleed to death just yet.

"So, Benjamin, that was a stupid thing you did there," he heard a voice coming from somewhere behind the fog. He had to blink a few times to get that fog to clear. "Let me assure you, we will not let you do that again".

In his state, Nicholas wasn't fast enough to notice the kick heading his way. Although he probably wouldn't have been able to do anything to avoid it even if he had noticed it. He let out a pained growl as his ribs and abdomen were taking hits of increasing strength. He vaguely heard some sickening cracking sounds but couldn't be sure, as all the noises were being overshadowed by the wild ringing in his ears. Despite the agony he was in, he knew they weren't going to kill him just yet. They still needed him. Needed _Benji_. Which meant there was more pain to come.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Danny was nervous. Well, he had more than one reason to be, but right now he was trying to focus on the seemingly least unnerving one, as some of the others were causing him to panic.

He was about to meet Nicholas' brother. Nicholas' _twin_ brother. What was he like? He had only heard Nicholas mention him once and quite unwillingly. Did they get on well? He was an IT specialist, as Danny remembered. Hard to imagine someone whose twin brother was a supercop that couldn't be stopped being a person of such a… normal, usual kind.

After quite a peculiar sounding knock from Ethan the door opened… and Danny's eyes went wide. The man standing at the doorstep looked exactly like Nicholas, and yet… completely unlike him. He seemed slightly thinner than Nicholas, and despite his features were identical to those of his brother's, the expression on his face made him look a bit younger, despite now it was mainly worried and increasingly confused.

"Who is this?" he asked, looking from Danny to his teammates, his body visibly tense.

"Danny – Benji, Benji – Danny," Brandt introduced not without noticeable sarcasm.

"This is Sergeant Butterman," Jane interrupted with an exasperated sigh. She was about to add something but saw the technician's eyes go wide at the name itself. It was obvious he had heard it before.

"Benji, I need to talk to you for a second," Ethan had to put his hand on the younger agent's shoulder in order to get him to snap out of it, as he was still staring at their guest, and follow him into a next room. However, it was Benji who spoke first once they reached their destination.

"Why did you get him here?" he asked quietly before Ethan even got the chance to open his mouth.

"A hunch," Ethan knew this explanation wasn't good enough but he didn't have a better one. "I feel like he's capable of more than he looks like".

"I _know_ he is," Benji replied, nodding to some of his thoughts. "I also know what Nick is capable of when someone he cares about is in danger. Butterman is not an agent, and you're dragging him into this so easily?"

Under any other circumstances Ethan would have found it hilarious how similar to Brandt Benji now was.

"Trust me, Benji," he drew a wide grin on his face. "Oh, and while Daniel is around, you are not an agent, either. You're an IT specialist under the FBI's protection".

Benji didn't even try to argue. By this point, having known Ethan for years, he knew there was no point in arguing with him. To him the result would be only exasperation, exhaustion and an almost painful desire to punch the older agent in the face. He drew a breath and nodded before returning to the other room where the silence was getting awkward.

"So, you are Danny Butterman," he reached to shake the police officer's hand, smiling as warmly as he could. "Nick has told me about you".

"Has he?" Danny was really surprised for some reason. He also couldn't help but notice how even the way Benji smiled was different to Nicholas. It seemed more innocent. Probably because, even though having had his death faked and being under protection, Benji didn't have to live with what Nicholas lived. All the deaths and fights and car chases… it really takes a lot out of you, Danny thought. He also remembered how shaken Nicholas was with the experience of having killed someone. Benjamin was lucky he didn't have to live with that. "What did he say?"

"You saved his life," the smile on Benji's face was now gone, making him look a lot more like Nicholas, his dark blue eyes looking into Danny's with all the sincerity he could muster. Danny couldn't help the odd feeling this was causing him.

"Well, you know…" Danny rubbed the back of his head and looked down. He had no idea the two brothers had kept in touch and even talked about him.

"I don't know if I would be ever able to do what you did," Benji went on, recalling Nicholas' story of how Danny had dived in front of a gun, taking a bullet for his friend… and Benji's brother. "And…" he could feel a lump in his throat, all the worry he had been pushing to the side up to this moment finally catching up with him. Would they get to save Nick this time? What if it was already too late?

Danny couldn't help but feel the same. He was suddenly so lost, involved in some game with real FBI agents, and it didn't seem as exciting as he had thought, because Nicholas was still missing, and they didn't know if he was even alive and… He sat down, his eyes welling up a bit.


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: And once again, so sorry for the delay! I hope someone out there is still interested in this story…_

_And I still don't own anything._

**Chapter 10**

Until now, Nicholas Angel had thought that stuff like this only happened in movies. Now he thought… To be completely honest, now he could barely think at all. He vaguely recalled being beaten, then pushed under water, then beaten again and forced under water over and over again. He could clearly remember the agonising feeling of the liquid entering his lungs. He could swear he had died several times, but every time he had been mercilessly brought back to life.

Now he was lying on the floor, watching red spots dance in front of his eyes. He felt absolutely numb, enjoying these blissful moments when there was no pain. Except for breathing. Breathing hurt like hell, his throat and lungs still crushed after multiple drownings.

Slowly, his mind was getting clearer. Consciousness was coming back to him, followed by the agony in all of his limbs. Was this what his brother had to deal with?... He shuddered, unsure whether it was even a shudder or just a painful convulsion. Imagining Benji going through all of this made him sick. Again. He wondered whether Benji even knew what had happened. There was no guarantee anyone knew. He had a suspicion that the Met could have a hunch but were too worried about the possibility of failing the operation. It didn't matter that him being captured before even getting the needed information from his colleagues meant the operation had already failed. At least that still gave them the opportunity to organise another one.

Nicholas suddenly felt a wave of slight amusement as he tried to imagine people at the Met attempting to come up with an explanation for him having been captured in the first place. They didn't know about Benji, didn't know about all this super-spy stuff… They knew nothing. _And does anybody know anything?_

_Does Danny know what is happening to me? It's probably a good thing he doesn't know… Sure, he would be excited about the proper spy movie shit he might be imagining… _Nicholas couldn't hold back a painful chuckle._ But reality is not like in the movies. Does Benji know?... If I die, will he even find out?... He most certainly will, at some point. _Nicholas felt a lump in his crushed throat at the thought_ – Benji will most likely blame himself…_

Nicholas got hit by another wave of pain, which brought more black despair. Nobody would know what happened. They probably wouldn't even find his body… Another painful tremor shook the inspector as he was hit with a realisation: he was already fully assuming that he wasn't going to get out alive…

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Danny was looking at Benji and trying to imagine what he must have been feeling. Was it the same dread that was now consuming the sergeant from the inside? The dread that wouldn't just give up and subside, pushed away by some faint distractions? Indeed, the blond man did look quite agitated, biting on his thumbnail, his gaze distant and wandering. However, there was something else behind that look, something Danny couldn't place. He wanted to say something reassuring, wanted to give his word that they would find Nicholas, but he knew it would be a lie, as he still hadn't got a faintest idea what was going on.

"You look a lot like Nicholas," he suddenly said, his throat sore and dry. The sound of his voice made both men jump.

"We're twins," Benji replied with a sheepish smile, as if that hadn't been established already. That kind of smile looked very odd on a face that was so much like Nicholas. Danny looked down.

"So… you're under the FBI's protection?" he asked and watched the other man nod.

"Yeah…" Benji rubbed the back of his head, looking from Danny to the computer screen in front of him and then to the door leading to the room where the agents were.

"Must be scary," Danny went on, catching himself thinking that, apart from scary, that must have been hella cool. Although it's probably the agents who are having the most fun, not the people under protection. Benji shrugged.

"A bit scary," he replied with a sigh. He hated playing this role, especially now, when he needed to concentrate and do everything to get his brother back, but he had no choice. "It just all happened so quickly, you know…" He cut off, noticing something on the screen.

"Guys!" he called, swiftly putting the headphones on. Danny watched the agents rush into the room. He suddenly felt jealous of Benji being of at least some use to the case, apparently tracing someone's tracks. He began to feel useless, unable to help Nicholas or even be of any aid to these people.

There were a few minutes of silence, as Benji was listening to something in his headphones and watching the screen intently. The hard expression on his face made him look more like his brother once again, and Danny had to blink with an effort to get himself back to reality. The reality in which Nicholas was missing and they had no idea where he was…

"Got them!" Benji exclaimed, jumping off his seat and starting to move towards the door. "Let's get going!"

Brandt was the fastest to reach out and grab the blond man's shoulder.

"What do you think you are doing?" he asked sternly, earning quite a look from his friend who, however, couldn't say anything without blowing his cover. "You don't mean you are going there, do you?"

"It's not your job, Benjamin," Ethan joined in, making Benji want to punch him more than ever. "It's ours. You need to stay safe".

Jane didn't say anything as she placed her hand on his other shoulder and gave it a squeeze, her look, however, showing the most understanding.

After a few minutes it took Benji to explain to the others what he had found out and tell them the address he had traced, the three agents were ready to leave. As two of them were already out, Ethan turned to Danny, who at this point felt completely lost.

"Take care of him," the agent said, nodding in Benji's direction. "He might still be in danger".

And with that, he left. Danny suddenly felt both really important and scared. He looked at Benji, who was now sitting in his chair, looking defeated. _But everything is going to be fine now. They will find Nicholas. Will they?..._


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: A quick update for a change… Thank you to everyone who's reading it, and thank you for the reviews, they really keep me going. Hope you enjoy!_

_And I still don't own anything, strangely enough…_

**Chapter 11**

Gingerly, Danny walked up to a sofa near the chair Benji was sitting in and sat down. He wanted to say something, felt like he was supposed to say something, but the lump in his throat wouldn't let him. He felt his stomach doing flips as he made feeble attempts at steadying his breath. He needed to pull himself together. He was responsible for someone else's safety now. This pressure was dragging him down a bit, even though nothing was probably going to happen. At least, Danny hoped so. In the past few years he had learned that proper action isn't always that amazing. Actually, he had completely finalised that conclusion in his mind the moment he had opened his eyes in a hospital in Buford Abbey, where he had been brought after the explosion… _He remembered how much everything had hurt, and he couldn't figure out where he was, and he couldn't breathe… But one of the first things he saw upon waking up was one familiar face. The same face he remembered barely seeing before everything had gone to black, only now their surroundings were different. And Nicholas wasn't crying anymore, although his eyes were slightly red as his face lit up with a faint smile. And at that moment Danny was just happy it was all over, and they were both alive and safe… _Although now they weren't that safe anymore.

His thoughts were interrupted by Benji's short sigh as he checked his watch.

"They will get Nicholas," Danny hadn't expected his voice to be so weak and shaky. There was no reply from the blond man, who just stared intently at the screen of his laptop, his fingers pressed tightly to his lips, as if preventing him from saying anything. "I mean, they look like they're good at what they do…"

"Oh, they are good, they are the best. I mean the best out of anyone I know. I mean…" Benji felt that he was now babbling and gritted his teeth to stop himself from saying anything that could give him away.

"Do you know them well?" Danny asked, shifting in his seat. Out of all the things he would ever want to ask Nicholas' brother about this wasn't anywhere near the top of the list. However, he felt that words were now escaping his mouth without much of an effort from his mind.

Benji checked his watch again.

"Yeah, quite. I mean, they've been around for years, you know…" he shrugged. He hated this. Hated having to stay away and have a social conversation with a person he barely knew and who was clearly just as worried as he was. Hated sitting and doing nothing when his brother was in danger. Because of him.

Danny nodded. This was getting increasingly awkward every second. He could feel his heart pounding in his ears. Benji checked his watch yet again when suddenly his eyes went wide, glued to some spot at the screen, and he grabbed his headphones. For about a minute Danny watched him in silence, noticing how the man's hands were now shaking.

"Damn it!" Benji exclaimed all of a sudden, ripping the headphones off and rushing to a desk across the room to get his phone.

"What happened?" Danny asked, watching him dial the number. There was no reply, as whoever he was calling seemed to have picked up, and the techie left the room.

"Ethan!" Benji practically yelled, barely giving the older agent the time ho say hello. "You went in the wrong way! They're at the opposite end of the city!"

"_What? Where are they?"_

"I'll send you the details," he swallowed. "We gotta hurry".

"_We're on our way!"_ Ethan's voice was accompanied by the screeching of the breaks as he took a violent turn. It was unbelievable he managed to drive in big cities without killing any civilians.

"I'll get there faster," Benji replied in a low voice.

There was a sharp exhale on the other end of the line, and Benji could clearly picture the older agent closing his eyes and sighing exasperatedly. Obviously, this time he couldn't have closed his eyes because he was, most likely, driving.

"_Just don't go in there before we arrive,"_ Ethan said defeatedly. Benji was grateful for that. Ethan clearly realised it was pointless arguing with him trying to stop him. And he appreciated that a lot.

"I'll see what I can do," he stated before disconnecting. He vaguely heard weak protests from what sounded like Brandt before pressing the button.

Without a second thought he walked straight to his bag and reached inside it to get his gun.

"What are you doing?" he heard a faint voice behind him. The police officer is still here Benji. Great. So much for your work on your self control – you forgot about another person being in the room.

"Going to get my brother. Are you with me?" he decided that the blunter he was the better. It did have a great effect on Danny, as the poor officer seemed too confused to properly process the reply.

"But- but we're supposed to stay here!" the sergeant argued, still looking at the blond man with a mix of confusion, worry and a hint of fear.

"Look," Benji put his hands on Danny's shoulders, causing him to flinch, as it reminded him of how Nicholas sometimes did that, "it will take ages for the others to get there. In that time Nick can be dead," his voice trembled at the last word.

"But… no," Danny tried as hard as he could to put force into his tone. Who did he think he was? Life isn't like the movies. You can't just become an action hero when you want to. Danny now knew that too well. "I can't let you go, you don't…"

"You can go with me though," Benji looked down. He needed as much help as he could get. "I can't explain everything to you. Trust me, I know what I am doing. I just…" he looked up again, trying to find something in the other man's face. To find the worry for his friend, the hidden strength Nick had told him about, "… I can't do this alone".


End file.
